Denise Welch to play Mother Nature in a new GIANT pantomime adventure sprouting up in Newcastle’s Times Square in 2017. An enchanting tale of rags to riches, fearsome giants, castles in the clouds and the odd golden egg thrown in for good measure, Jack and the Beanstalk will dazzle North East audiences with larger than life sets, costumes and traditional panto magic.

Times Square in Newcastle has played host to numerous events in recent years including the annual visit from the Ladyboys of Bangkok, outdoor concerts by Fatboy Slim, and most recently the Oktoberfest. But next Christmas, the city centre location will host the first pantomime and will be transformed into a magical land taking North East audiences on an all new theatre experience.

The new Pantodrome venue will be specially constructed alongside the Ice Rink at Life and offer a star studded Christmas spectacular.

Geordie favourite, Denise Welch – best known for her roles in soaps Coronation Street, Emmerdale and regular panellist on ITV lunchtime chat show Loose Women will take on the role of Mother Nature and provide the magic in toon over the festive period.

With further star casting to be announced, Jack and the Beanstalk will have a three week run next Christmas with a number of public and school performances scheduled between Monday 11th – Saturday 30th December.

Local lad, Jamie Owen Gray, Managing Director of NS Pantomimes and Producer of Jack and the Beanstalk said, “I’m thrilled to be bringing this exciting new show to my hometown next year. I think Geordie audiences are ready for something fresh and different and this will provide a whole new adventure for young and old. We’re following a similar concept to In the Night Garden UK Tour”.

“I’m delighted to have Denise on board – Geordies love a good pantomime and Newcastle audiences are different to any other in the country, they have a particular sense of humour. We write and create productions specifically to the town and cast that we are working with. I think Denise will be the perfect Geordie fairy character to bring our story to life with that special Northern twist”.

“I’ve loved seeing pantomimes since I was a child, I’ve always visited the local shows five and six times per season, each time I notice something else. I’ve learned so much over the years watching shows, paying attention to detail as well as the audiences and how they react to the productions. My inspiration comes from all over the world; I am always thinking of the next unique costume or gag. When you work in this industry – Christmas is an all year round thing and your brain never switches off”.

Jack and the Beanstalk follows the story of young lad Jack, his brother Simple Simon and their mother Dame Trott – they haven’t a penny to their name and are forced to sell the family cow at Market. Mother Nature lends a helping hand when the Giant’s henchman fools Jack into selling the cow for a bag of beans and takes her off to Cloudland.

“I love the story of Jack – it’s really traditional and I want to keep it that way – but with panto these days you need to make them more dynamic to keep up with the times, newer jokes, lots of local references – people expect outstanding costumes and effects too and that’s what we intend to do with this. Nice and traditional local story but with amazing production standards – our beanstalks been designed already – it’s so quirky I love it!

Tickets:

Tickets for Jack and the Beanstalk go on general public sale Friday 16th December from timessquarepanto.com/tickets or calling 0333 666 3366 from only £18.00.